It took less than 15 minutes for trustees with the East Central Alberta School Board to render the unwelcome decision on the future of Mother Teresa Catholic School at their monthly meeting at Christ-King Catholic School on Monday, March 21, as parents, students and members of the Halkirk community looked on in dismay.
In a unanimous vote, trustees voted to permanently transfer students from Mother Teresa to Theresetta Catholic School in Castor starting in the 2016-17 school year, effectively condemning the school to closure.
The meeting started with a presentation by the Concerned Parents group, this time by member Kevin Perry. Perry spoke about the value of the school to the community, something that couldn't be determined on spreadsheets. Students thrived at the school, he said, going on to achieve honour roll membership when at their next scholastic institution. The school was also a hub in the community, with many events revolving around or involving students from the school.
The board thanked him for his passionate presentation, then reiterated the reasons why the board was considering closing the school. The school has had declining enrollment and enrollment models show a continued decline; the school does not qualify for small school by necessity funding due to the proximity of Theresetta in Castor, and the condition of the building.
An engineering report found the school had several shortcomings when it comes to being up to today's health and safety standards, including but not limited to problems with electrical and air systems, the need for a repaired roof, crumbling verge, and the possibility of mould from previous leaks.
With the recitation of facts by board chair Mardy Charlebois complete, a trustee tabled a motion to permanently transfer the students of Mother Teresa to Theresetta for next year. With no discussion or questions, trustees voted unanimously in favour of the motion, stunning the gathered parents, students and members of the community to silence.
"I appreciate this isn't the outcome you wanted," Charlebois said to the silent crowd of about 50 people. "This has not been an easy decision, but we have to consider all schools."
Her quiet condolences, and the continued stone-faced silent of trustees finally prompted the silence to break.
"It's just money, right?" J.D. Johnson, who has been the outspoken leader of the parents group, bitterly called to the board as he and the other parents stood and prepared to file out. "Just money."
"I hope you can sleep at night," another woman called out.
Out in the lobby, parents mingled together, some on the verge of tears, others fuming. Several students from Mother Teresa surreptitiously wiped eyes on their sleeves.
"We tried our darnedest," Johnson said. "It's a tough decision, and it leaves a sour taste. We just wanted to keep our small school."
Louanne Dahmer has had three children go through Mother Teresa, with her youngest about to graduate this year. One is now a teacher, and another is in his third year of business. Her husband, Rocky, also attended the school.
"I have a feeling that not a lot of kids will go there (Theresetta)," she said. "This is awful."
Another parent, who declined to give her name, said she was concerned about what would happen to the school building now. Located at the entrance to the community, she had concerns it would become derelict and an eyesore.
"They should be responsible for remediating it," she said.
Cynthia Perry, whose husband Kevin had spoken earlier, noted that the focus on money by the school board violated its mission.
"This is going against the mission of sharing the message of Christ and a faith-based education," she said. "By just looking at the spreadsheet, they ignore that. They'll have to go into eternity with that."
Charlie McCormack, board superintendent, said the decision was not easy to make despite the speed in which it was made, noting that trustees had been able to stay abreast of the issue until the meeting.
"We're very proud of our parents," he said of the group who had done their hardest to keep the school open. "It's because of them we kept the school open in 2004 (when the first motion to close the school was discussed)."
He said that staff at the school would be offered jobs elsewhere in the division.